Texans general manager Rick Smith received the second-most important telephone call of his professional career this week from Ray Anderson, the NFL’s executive vice president/football operations.

Smith knew he was a candidate to be appointed to the league’s prestigious competition committee, but he didn’t want to get his hopes up. When Anderson informed him he’d been appointed to the eight-man committee, Smith felt an enormous sense of pride.

“It obviously is an enormous responsibility and a tremendous honor for me,” Smith said Friday while the Texans prepared for Sunday’s game at Green Bay. “It’s something that’s very important to our league. I’m blessed to be a part of it, and I’m excited about the opportunity.”

“I have a tremendous amount of respect for the commissioner and how he’s running the league,” Smith said. “For me to have an opportunity to serve and be a part of something at the league level is exciting, and, obviously, important.”

Smith, 39, has received a lot of important telephone calls in his NFL career. At the top, of course, was the one he got in June 2006 from Texans owner Bob McNair making him an offer to become the youngest general manager in the league.

Smith was appointed to the committee to replace Matt Millen, who was fired as Detroit’s president in September. The competition committee is co-chaired by Tennessee coach Jeff Fisher and Atlanta president Rich McKay.

“I know how much it meant to me when commissioner (Paul) Tagliabue called me and told me I was on the committee,” Fisher said Friday. “It was such an honor. I’m sure Rick felt the same way when he got the call.

“Rick’s done an excellent job at Denver and Houston. He’s highly respected around the league. ”

“The competition committee basically is charged with making sure the game is played at as high of a level as we can play it,” Smith said. “That’s reviewing rules, whether they’re personnel rules or playing rules or officiating rules.”

The committee meets three times a year and has numerous conference calls before making recommendations to the owners on changes in rules and policy.